Alone In The Dark
by my99by
Summary: 1998. An institution for the criminally insane. A mysterious pharmaceutical company takes ownership, and from there everything goes downhill. A lone patient awakens and is given a task to complete in order to earn his freedom. However, who is the man giving him these orders? And what exactly is his angle? (This a remake of a story I wrote back in 2013)


The first thing that came to mind when I opened my eyes was that it was dark. While all lights in the rooms of patients were shut off upon curfew, the hall lights always remained active. So it was quite the surprise for me to wake up to nothing but pure pitch blackness. As I gathered my senses, the only sound I could hear was howling of wind and the thundering boom of the storm raging outside. I pushed my blankets off of myself and swept my legs over the edge of my bed, and ran a hand through my hair. However, it was then that something else raised my attention: it was quiet. This place always had its fair share of noise; doctors wheeling around patients, the occasional freak out episodes of patients with lower brain functions, and the casual chatter of guards on patrol. Tonight however, was different. I couldn't hear a single thing; the halls were silent, and I couldn't hear anyone at all.

I rose to my feet and stretched, and I proceeded to approach the heavy door that confined me to my room. Although I doubted I could leave, I tried the doorknob. It turned.

I froze instantly, as a tidal wave of confusion slammed into my gut. This place was a home for the criminally insane, or those who were just too dangerous to live in society. I had no recollection of what I did specifically, but I always felt like a normal guy. Nevertheless, I had obviously done something to end up in this place. People thought I was dangerous, so I was locked away. So what sense did it make to leave the door of an apparently dangerous criminal _unlocked._ With my hand still on the knob, I pondered the idea of opening the door and going for a walk. I winced at the thought of guards beating me senseless with their batons. The last time I lost my temper and made a run for it I woke up in an infirmary with a blackened eye a serious concussion. But I decided to throw caution to the wind and I opened the door anyway.

The hall was dimly lit; most of the fluorescent lights were off, and only a few still on, casting menacing shadows along the walls. I decided to go for a stroll throughout my local wing of the building. I was surprised to find no one around. No nurses, doctors, guards, not even a janitor. I even checked the employee lounge and found it barren. Looking around the lounge I decided to relax for now. I sat back against one of the sofas and allowed myself to sink back into the rounded cushions. As I sat there with my hands folded behind my head, I couldn't help but think about my current situation. Where was everyone? Seeing as though this establishment has been in business for a number of years, I found it hard to imagine that all of the staff would just up and about all the patients/prisoners still in their rooms?

I scoffed at that thought. It wasn't like I enjoyed my time here. Actually. . . since there was no one here. . . didn't that mean that no one was guarding any of the entrances into the building? During my search in the halls, I couldn't find a single security guard, so that had to mean that there would be no resistance to prevent my escape. Satisfied with my plan, I exited the lounge and made my way through the halls, following the wall mounted signs on the walls that pointed towards areas of interest. I finally came to a set of double doors at the end of my this building's wing, and was quite happy to see the bright red exit sign above. I placed my hand on the handle and pulled.

Nothing.

Crap. I pulled on the handle again, harder this time. Still, the door wouldn't budge. I stood in front the door scratching my head; It was then that I remembered something from about six months ago. I had been reading a book in my room when the two guards standing out front started talking to one another about increased security and new protocols. Apparently, this place's doors had all had new electromagnetic locks installed. If what those guards were saying was true, then that means that power was necessary to open these doors. And it appeared that the power had gone down in some areas. How was that _even_ possible? This place was built to resist the strongest of storms. As if on cue, thunder rolled in the distance, followed by a crack of lightning which illuminated any window I could see.

Since the east wing's doors were locked, I'd have to find another way out. While I didn't spend much time outside of my cell, I tried to think of the basic layout of the building. If the power had gone down in some areas, wouldn't there be some kind of circuit breaker in the basement? That had to be it, the circuit breaker was always in the basement. If that's the case, then to the basement I go.

With the power out, I could kiss the chances of using an elevator goodbye, at least for time being. As I wandered the wing I found what I was looking for. A grey metal door that led to a stairwell that had roof and basement access. However when I opened the door, I was met by a very, very dimly lit stairwell that was illuminated only by red emergency lights. I carefully made my way down the stairs, keeping my grip on the rail secure as I stepped down one at a time. When I reached the basement level, I noticed a very strong smell at the bottom. It was unpleasant; it was the foul scent of garbage and decay, as if something had _died_ down here. I opened the door to the basement and was shocked at what I saw directly in front of the door. It was a corpse. The body was that of a security guard, only it was torn to pieces. Its abdomen and chest cavity were completely open, organs mainly gone or strewn across the floor in bits and pieces. Blood was splattered on the surrounding walls and in a huge pool around the body. Bullet shell casings littered the floor and a Beretta 9mm was still in the former guard's grip. As horrible as he smelled, that didn't stop me from looting him. I tore off the belt that held his equipment and holster and strapped it onto my waist. I collected his pistol and snapped back the slide. Empty. I guess I'll have to find the bullets myself then.

As I made my way through the basement, I found more bodies all in the same condition. All were torn apart, apparently eaten. While I had no idea who or what did this, all I knew was that I needed to turn on the power or else I'c never get out of this place. If I thought the halls of my wing or were dimly lit, the basement was an entirely different story. Some parts of the basement were entirely pitch black with the only light source being the red light source being the red emergency lights built into the walls. But luckily for me there was a flashlight included in the gear I picked up from the dead guard. I flicked the switch on the flashlight and continued my search for the generator or circuit breaker or whatever the hell powered this place. I finally found what I was looking for in the form of a door with a warning sign on the door that read " **WARNING: HIGH VOLTAGE."** Now we're talkin'.

I opened the door only to be met by a horrid smell. There was another corpse in here. I swept the flashlight's beam across the room and nearly jumped out of my skin at what I saw. It was a security guard, but this one wasn't dead like the others. He stood in a corner with his back to me as he seemingly stared at the wall in front of him. Despite how weird this was, I couldn't just stand there and not say anything. I mean, several of his comrades were lying dead in the hallway. That seems like something pretty important to share. Not to also mention my door being unlocked and the power being out in most of the building. "Um, sir? You okay over there?" At the sound of my voice the guard released a moan. It was one of the weirdest sounds I've ever heard. Like steam rushing out of a pipe.

"Officer, you feelin' alright or —" The guard turned towards me and afterwards I immediately knew I was in trouble. Half of his face had been torn off, revealing the muscle tissues and fibers that enveloped his skull. His eyes were milky white and lifeless, and he moved in a slow manner as if intoxicated or high. As he slowly shuffled towards me in his drunken gait, I rechecked the pockets on the belt I wore. My fingers closed around the cold metal of a handgun magazine. _Now how the hell didn't I notice that sooner?_

I had no idea what was wrong with this guy, but I knew he was beyond help. I loaded the magazine into the beretta and stood in a ready to fire position, the barrel of the pistol trained on his head. I pulled the trigger and watched as the back of the guard's head exploded, painting the wall red with blood and brain matter. I found the building's main circuit breaker a few feet away. I opened the panel and shined my flashlight beam at it. I flipped some of the large red switches and was met with a shower of sparks exploding from the breaker. "Damnit!" I shielded my face from the sparks, and took a few steps back. I could hear the sound of machines running followed by the lights coming back on. I heaved a sigh of relief.

Now nothing would stand in the way of my escape. With the power back on I began working my way back to the stairwell, taking occasional glances at the dead security guards scattered throughout the halls. I wasn't sure what the hell happened, and I sure as hell didn't wanna know. When my arrived back at my wing I was shocked to hear a voice over the intercom.

" _I'd like to thank you for turning the power back on, but I unfortunately I have bad news. I cannot let you leave. At least, not yet. You've seen nothing, yet you've seen too much. While the power may have been restored I will not allow you to escape. Not yet. Until then I have a job that I need you to do for me. Now, seeing as though this place is crawling with infected, I cannot leave my current position. I'm safe, and no one, and nothing knows that I'm here. Now, for the job I need you to complete; I need you go into the building's west wing and find a keycard. This keycard will give you access to lab located beneath the building. I'll be there every step of the way. I have eyes everywhere, so keep in mind that I'm always watching. Good luck."_

After hearing that pleasant little announcement, I knew that my life was gonna get a lot more complicated.


End file.
